the matter is whether or not words, by their very nature, can lock in meaning between diverse cultures and prevent the adulteration of key words through time
Hey, I didn't bite the dust, themilum. I just wasn't around much this past weekend.
I think we are agreed. Words mutate. So, there is no way to lock them up.
And many words are understood differently by different groups which share the same language even within the same culture. And, of course, the meaning of a word is even more elastic when it moves beyond national borders. Sweden and Denmark share many of the same words but, as I learned last night on the radio, some perfectly respectable words in Sweden are offensive in Denmark.
I assume you would argue from here, themilum, that every culture or micro-culture understands words differently and, therefore, they should interpret those words for themselves, without regard to the meaning attributed to those words in other cultures [for instance, in other states of the Union, or in other countries].
Would I have that right, themilum?
